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September Issue 2003
Sumter Gallery of Art in Sumter, SC, Presents Works by Janet Orselli, Lyon Hill and Robert Padley
Columbia artist Janet Orselli will have an installation exhibit at the Sumter Gallery of Art in Sumter, SC, beginning Sept. 4 and continuing through Oct. 31, 2003, entitled, Sensorium. During the same time an exhibition entitled, The Magic and Mystery of Marionettes: The Art of Lyon Hill and Robert Padley will be on view.
Janet
Orselli
In Sensorium, Orselli creates a series of intimate spaces for the viewer to enter and move through within the larger gallery. The installations will involve the fabrication of interior environments that the viewer will experience and interact with while physically moving through them. One of the intentions is for the viewer to become an active participant in the process of questioning and creating his or her own meaning on sensory, emotional and intellectual levels.
"I combine and juxtapose natural and man-made objects that have rich visual histories, says Orselli. "In my installation, Sensorium, I seek to give the viewer a direct experience of the physical and spiritual world by way of the senses."
The
Magic and Mystery of Marionettes: The Art of Lyon Hill and Robert
Padley is an opportunity for the intricate
puppets created by Lyon Forrest Hill and Robert Padley for the
Columbia Marionette Theatre's productions to be viewed as individual
sculptures in a gallery environment. Each puppet is unique and
requires a different method of construction to achieve the desired
look and range of movements. Numerous visual aids will highlight
the creative process from conception to construction. The puppets
range in size from less than a foot to over five feet, and feature
characters from a wide range of sources - Alice in Wonderland,
Peter Pan, The Steadfast Tin Soldier, Frankenstein, and Greek
mythology.
Lyon Forrest Hill was born in Columbia, SC, in 1975. He grew up in Columbia, Charleston, and Swansea. He has studied at Savannah College of Art and Design, University of New Mexico, and graduated from University of South Carolina in 1997.
Hill had been experimenting with dollmaking and this led him to the Columbia Marionette Theatre in 1997 where he met Robert Padley. A friendship quickly developed. The two were hired as puppeteers, but soon began painting sets and lending vocal talent to new productions. The two have contributed to approximately forty productions for the theatre (eight as puppetmakers).
In 2000, the founder and puppetmaker, Allie Scollon, retired and her son, John Scollon, became executive director. Padley and Hill assumed the role of puppetmakers. Their puppets have evolved from methods practiced by Allie Scollon.
Hill has directed several productions for Columbia Marionette Theatre including; A Christmas Carol with Robert Padley in 1997, Jack Frost in 1999, Greek Myths in 2000, and Frankenstein in 2002.
Born in bonny Scotland in 1974, Padley's family moved to England in 1977. Schooling was a typical socialist nightmare and he left with eight 'O levels' in 1989. Jump to 1995 when Padley met his (now ex-) wife on the internet and moved to the United States in 1996. A history of freelance art and a love of cinema/theater moved him to answer an advertisement in The State newspaper for a puppeteer. A kindred spirit was met at the theater. Lyon Hill proved to be a great artistic inspiration to Padley and still is to this day. Their symbiotic relationship at the theater led them to strive to improve the shows artistically and theatrically. The two act as joint artistic directors; making the puppets and overseeing the creation of the sets. Padley has also directed several productions for Columbia Marionette Theatre; A Christmas Carol with Lyon Hill in 1997, A User is a Loser in 2000, Peter Pan in 2002, and Space Pirates in 2003. After seven years in puppetry, Padley is still learning the art of the marionette.
About the Columbia Marionette Theatre
CMT was founded in 1988 by Allie Scollon as the culmination of a lifetime dedicated to the art of puppetry. The theater is open year round, and in addition to its main stage productions, it tours performances across South Carolina. Allie's son John Scollon is the executive director and produces all the audio for productions. Lyon F. Hill and Robert Padley are the art directors and puppetmakers. Karri R. R. Scollon is seamtress and creative consultant for all puppet costumes. Toni Turbeville is business manager and promoter. Richard Morgan is the traveling manager. All contribute creatively to the productions and are practicing puppeteers.
A marionette is a puppet operated by strings. This simple parameter is all that defines it. There are no standards for the number of strings, the shape of the controls, the size, or the length of strings. All of these vary greatly from one puppetmaker to the next. These factors fall in two groups that are a puppetmaker's main concern: appearance and performance.
The stylization of all puppets within a production must be consistent (in our case 8-10 marionettes). The look of the characters is the first thing we establish. The tone of a show determines whether a realistic or a highly stylized look is appropriate. We work out the design of each character through numerous drawings.
The next consideration is determining which materials to use for construction. Size, weight, and range of movement are all factors. For example, large puppets utilize rope, PVC, and foam to keep weight manageable. Detailed features are sculpted in clay and a mold is made so they can be cast in neoprene, a tough rubberlike substance.
The placement of joints and restrictions determines a puppet's articulation. Every action that the puppet is to perform must be taken into account. Once assembled, a puppet is then painted and costumed (paying attention not to restrict the joints).
Stringing a puppet is very much part of the creative process. Every attempt is made to keep the control bar as simple as possible. More strings does not necessarily equal a better puppet. A good puppet is efficient, with only as many strings as are necessary to achieve the desired range of movements.
During a performance, the puppeteer's goal is for the audience to forget about the mechanics of the puppets and to focus instead on the story , 'making the leap' to believe the characters. On our main stage, the puppeteers and controls are completely hidden.
This exhibit is an opportunity to see our puppets outside the context of the shows they were created for. They can be observed as individual sculptures and appreciated as puppets, without 'making the leap'. They can be examined more closely for details not discernible from an audience perspective. The controls will be visible so that each puppet can be appreciated in its entirety. There will also be visual aids from each step of the creation process.
For more information check our SC Institutional
Gallery listings or call the gallery at 803/775-0543.
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